Are Both Sides Really To Blame For The Charlottesville Violence?

We are all too familiar with the tragic events of Charlottesville, Va this past Friday evening. As one would expect, we all waited in anticipation of what our President thought about the horrifying events. I, for one, was exasperatedly disturbed to hear what President Trump had to say about what took place on August 11th, 2017. If there’s one thing I know, it’s that the American people depend on strong, sound leadership during times like these. We, as a nation, look to our leaders for comfort, guidance, perspective and direction. It’s disappointing, to say the least, that President Trump would not only fail to call out this heinous act as terrorism but would shift blame to both sides of this unfortunate event.

During a press conference held on Tuesday evening, President Trump shared his beliefs that both sides were to blame for the violent KKK rally that left 35 people injured and 3 dead.

“What about the ‘alt-left’ that came charging at, as you say, the ‘alt-right’? Do they have any semblance of guilt?”

Have we gotten to the point where standing up and calling out injustices against our people is no longer acceptable? Are we really allowing our nations most influential leader to shift blame to the blameless in this incident? Could we actually place blame on those peaceful demonstrators, standing up against the heinous acts they were witnessing? It is the responsibility of our elected officials, representatives, and leaders to fight against any and all acts of injustice, crime, discrimination and enslavement. It is the responsibility of our nations capitol to snuff out these horrendous acts of unjustness against the American people. We are one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Is there any liberty in blaming? Is there any justice in the President’s sentiments? I think not.

As Christians, it is our duty to defend and protect the biblical truths outlined in the Word of God as well as our fellow brother and sister in Christ. When we see comments like these being made by our leaders, it is our duty to educate non-believers and silent believers about the Bible’s stance on hatred and bigotry. We were not called to merely stand by and watch the enemy’s ploys play out against our fellow man. It is our God given right to speak out, in love, about the absurd stance our President has on issues like these.

In the words of Billy Graham, cited by Ed Stetzer,

“The gospel has no meaning unless it helps those who are hurting or in need.”

The gospel is defined by Bible.org as “good news” and is translated from the Greek noun euangelion and verb euangelizo. It goes on to say that the word, euangelizomai means “to speak as a messenger of gladness, to proclaim good news”. We are commanded by God to proclaim the gospel to all non believers, so their hearts can be turned towards Him. It is our lifelong duty to show the love of Christ to this nation; a world so lost in sin it’s hard to find the good in it. But, it’s there. It’s been implanted into every one of our hearts from the moment we were formed. We are the good stewards of the message of the cross.

We are the ones who should be standing out in the crowd because of our godly conduct, not blending in because of our silence. Are we so afraid of showing the world that Christ died for them, that we would dare stomp on the monumental groundwork He laid out for us? Justice is in the heart of Christ. Jesus did not stand by, allowing others to condemn and mock the ones He loved. He stood up for them; in noble character and strength, all while showing them Christlike love. In the same article where Ed Stetzer cited the humbling words of Billy Graham, his words in Christianity Today resonate with the sentiments of Jesus about racism and hate.

“Racism is evil and we cannot pretend that it was not a part of the rhetoric in out culture these past several months . It simply must not continue, and we should be among the first to repudiate it.”

We are commissioned to go out into the world, drawing all men unto Christ. We best show our Christ-like characteristics in times like these. It is our responsibility as a body of believers to prove to the world that love, not indifference, brings the world together. Hate and racism will never be tolerated in the eyes of God. But, fighting injustice is a collective effort, starting with our nations leaders and trickling down every fiber of our nations flag; through all the people who makes this country what it is. Even in the midst of unimaginable destruction of our nations moral code, one thing remains true: “Hatred stirreth up strifes:but love covereth all sins.” Proverbs 10:12 KJV